Hot answers tagged chasidut-hasidism
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R' Eizik Vitebsker writes (look in Os 26) that the origin of this Chumra was from the Mezritcher Maggid.
R' Shneur Zalman of Liadi explains that since some opinions say that flour which was baked (without being kneaded first) can still become chometz after contacting water as it may not have been baked well.
He writes that (at least in his time) one could ...
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I appreciate your dilemma. If the novelty of the approach is what is stirring you today, when it does become familiar and regular to you, no matter what approach it is, it will become boring and uninspiring. There are certain universal principles for growth that you will find in any legitimate approach that can keep the words of Torah "as fresh as the day we ...
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This custom is known as gebrochts (Yiddish for "broken"); or "matza shruya" (soaked matza) in modern Hebrew. It's prevalent in many Hassidic and Hassidically-influenced communities, though many first encounter it with Lubavitch.
The custom arose out of concern that there may be a packet of dry flour in your matza. If that flour never reacted with water, ...
12
Chabad-Strashelye was started by R' Aharon Strashelye after the passing of the Alter Rebbe, the first Chabad Rebbe, due to different ideas of how to practice the teachings of Chabad. According to the Wikipedia article:
After Rabbi Aharon died, his son[who?] became Rebbe in his place. However, the dynasty did not last into the next generation. Many ...
12
R' Moshe himself apparently used Beis Yosef kesav. In his letter to the Lubavitcher Rebbe about Rabbeinu Tam's tefillin (Igros Moshe, vol. 6, no. 9), at the end, R' Moshe asks that the sofer whom the Rebbe charged with writing him a pair of R"T tefillin (I have heard orally that this was R' Eliezer Zirkind) should do so using Beis Yosef script, so that it ...
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Yours should be a journey of discovery, not simple menu selection. With time and investigation, you will find which of the two options you gravitate towards.
I would recommend spending some time with each group (not concurrently), learning the respective Chassidus of each, experiencing how the Chassidim interact among themselves and with others outside of ...
10
There is a Chabad way of learning Gemara, as described by the Rebbe Rashab, the 5th Lubavitcher Rebbe and founder of Yeshivat Tomchei Temimim. In his Kuntres Eitz Chayim, he explains why it is necessary to learn Chassidus in addition to learning Gemara properly. The entire text is available online in English.
From the introduction to the english ...
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As I understand it, the markings of these shevas follow the rules given by R' Shlomo Zalman Hanau, an important 18th-century grammarian. In his system, every sheva following a tenuah kallah (a "light" vowel, i.e., one that substitutes for a sheva or a chataf vowel) is vocalized; examples include מַלְכֵי (since the independent form is מְלָכִים) and נֶעֶרְמוּ ...
10
This article (PDF) says:
Credit for being the first "legitimate" Hasidic rebbe to settle in the
United States appears to go to the Ukrainian Twersky family. R.
David Mordecai Twersky, a descendant of R. David Twersky, the Tolner
Rebbe, settled in New York in 1912.
Earlier in the article, though, he mentions reports from 1893 in New York and 1894 ...
10
Those that go to Uman - go because they believe that Rabbi Nachman promised that if you come and pray at his grave on Rosh HaShana he will make sure that you have a good year. Many Rabanim are against this (Harav Ovadia Yosef amongst them). Woman do not go on Rosh HaShana both for Tznius and practical reasons (someone has to take care of the family). ...
9
A couple of other possibilities:
"the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l (or some other appropriate honorific)" - my preferred form on this site and elsewhere
"the late Lubavitcher Rebbe"
In conversation with non-Lubavitchers, "the Lubavitcher Rebbe" is probably unequivocal enough for most purposes (and in conversation among Lubavitchers, "the Rebbe"). It's much the ...
9
Most Chasidim do not wear ties. However there are some that do. Those that do not - do so as "In Der Alte Heim" they did not either. Those that do - do so as "In Der Alte Heim" they wore them.
For example: The Skvere Chasidim wear boots year round. The reason they wore them "In Der Alte Heim" was due to the severe cold weather. However they have continued ...
9
There is a booklet called Minhagei Melech that purports to collect all of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's customs; it states (pp. 28 and 34) that he indeed repeated the word with both vocalizations.
However:
It's questionable how reliable these reports are (not just the ones in MM, but more generally, oral descriptions of what the Rebbe said or did); in some ...
9
The first Chasidic Rebbe to come to America was R. David Mordecai Twersky who came in August of 1913.
The First American Chasidic Rebbe, I think would have to go to Grand Rabbi Pinchas Duvid Horowitz, the founder of the Boston Chasidim. He arrived in America via Israel and Europe in 1915.
The First American Chasidic Rabbi, would be Rabbi Abraham Ash,who ...
8
When a certain Chabad family in Detroit wanted to send their son to Rav Bakst's yeshiva, Rav Bakst felt that because of the derech halimud (style of learning) of what the boy had experienced in a previous Chabad yeshiva, which was more about learning up the texts (girsadige) he would not do well in his regular misnagdishe-litvishe yeshiva. The family did not ...
8
Since no one seems to have answered the last question, namely, are there any Chabad commentaries on the gemara....
There are many talks and writings from all the Lubavitcher Rebbeim on different topics in gemara. As far as I know, there is no one systematic commentary on Shas, and as their discussions of gemara topics are usually explanations according to ...
8
The roots of this minhag actually lie in the Gemara itself. In Pesachim 40b, there is a discussion which says explicitly that Rav Papi allowed servants in the beit Reish Galuta to thicken a tavshil with "chasisi." The Rif says this is matzah meal; Tosafot say it is lentil flour, and Rashi says it is dried flour. Rava says we need to be concerned in a place ...
8
Breslever chasidim leave E"Y to be by our rebbe at Rosh Hashana because he said to come, end of story. Not all Breslevers go - one of the great leaders of Breslev today, R' Elazar Kenig shlita, hosts a gathering in Meron for those who are unable to go. There is no specific issur in Uman. The issues of kivrei tzadikim and leaving E"Y in general are complex ...
8
The Kaliver Rebbi. It was pulled out by the Nazis Yemach Shemom.
http://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%A7%D7%95%D7%91%D7%A5:Kaliver_rebbe.jpg
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First ascertain for yourself what exactly caused you to grow disillusioned with your previous path. You may have already rationalized this, but it might deserve another look. If there are underlying issues behind it, you'll solve nothing by moving along to another path.
Spend some time thinking about your life. Get in touch with your emotions and try to ...
7
Sefer Ben Ish Hai Year 2 Bereshit Ot 29(Quoting from the English Edition published by Ahavat Shalom):
One then commences the physical preparations for qiddush. It should be noted that there are profound kabbalistic kawwanoth in each of these actions, so one should not omit any of them. One should recieve the cup of wine with both hands form someone ...
7
We do see that the Maggid entrusted R' Shneur Zalman with certain special tasks, such as the writing of an "updated" Shulchan Aruch, and the design of letterforms for STaM that would satisfy both the halachic (Beis Yosef) and kabbalistic (Arizal) opinions. The Maggid also gave him the title of "our Rav." As far as I know, these facts are not in dispute, not ...
7
The Tefillin of Rabbenu Tam were written by R' Zirkind, at the special request of R' Moshe. These tefillin were checked by my rebbe, Rabbi Shmuel Schneid, who told me that the tefillin were written in typical Russian Beis Yosef script. As any sofer experienced with Sifre Torah of the world will tell you, before 1948, each country and Edah had their unique ...
7
The Rebbe did not state that anyone who comes to his grave and prays will be granted a good year. He made a promise that anyone who travels to his grave, recites the Tikkun K'lali, donates at least a couple pennies to charity in his name, and, perhaps most importantly, take it upon himeself to leave his errant and foolish ways, then the Rebbe will do ...
7
The Lubavitcher Rebbe said that the custom among Lubavitch was to cut the Peos.
He said that there are a few reasons, one of which is to avoid mixing the two types of light from the 13 strands of the beard. He also mentioned that the Arizal used to cut his Peos (as is written in the Shaarei Hamitzvos and Taamei Hamitzvos parshas Kedoshim).
6
The reason for this custom is the suspicion that some flour remains uncooked in the matzah, and by water then touching it, allows for the opportunity of becoming chametz.
Matzah with water, or certain other liquids, is called "gebrochts" in Yiddish, and people who follow the custom to refrain from eating it are often said to "observe gebrochts" or "keep ...
6
It's interesting that another answer mentions the Alter Rebbe's answer as the origin, but fails to clearly explain the history of how/why this minhag suddenly started.
Why isn't this minhag / worry mentioned by any of the poskim ??
Here is an excerpt of the Alter Rebbe's answer:
ומה שלא הזכירו זה בפוסקים, היינו משום שזה אינו מצוי כלל אלא בעיסה קשה
...
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It may be under the influence of German (where z represents the sound /ts/, so it's unavailable for this purpose).
The first director of Merkos was R' Chaim Mordechai Aizik Hodakov ע"ה, who in the '20s and '30s was the principal of the Torah Im Derech Eretz school in Riga; and one of Merkos' early influential employees was Dr. Nissan Mindel ע"ה, who had ...
6
Datim is generally the equivalent of Modern Orthodox in the US.
Charedim is an umbrella name for Chasidim, Yeshivish and any other variety of strict Orthodox who try to observe Jewish Laws and customs (e.g. the Shulchan Aruch and early commentaries) to the letter.
Chasidim are in the Chareidi category with an emphasis on minhagim which are largely based on ...
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HaYom Yom for the 27th of Nissan "The permissible, when done for one's pleasure,1 is completely evil, as the Alter Rebbe writes in Tanya, Chapter 7, for we are commanded, "sanctify yourself with what is permitted to you."2 One must introduce sanctity into those matters that are permissible so that they serve the purpose of enhancing one's Torah, mitzvot, ...
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